Al Bateen Executive Airport

Al Bateen Executive Airport (IATA: AZI, ICAO: OMAD) is a dedicated business jet airport located 6.5 nautical miles (12.0 km; 7.5 mi) south east of Abu Dhabi city centre in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.[1] The airport is on the Abu Dhabi island. Other tenants include aviation assets of the UAE government. It opened in 1969 as Abu Dhabi International Airport to replace the older airport.

Al Bateen Executive Airport
Abu Dhabi
Summary
Airport typePublic
OperatorAbu Dhabi Airports Company
ServesAbu Dhabi
Opened1969
Hub forGulf Aviation(from 1969 to 1974) Gulf Air(from 1974 to 1982)
Focus city forBritish Airways, Singapore Airlines
Time zoneUAE Standard Time (UTC+04:00)
Elevation AMSL16 ft / 5 m
Coordinates24°25′42″N 54°27′29″E
Map
OMAD
Location in the UAE
Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
13/31 2,200 7,218 Asphalt
Sources: UAE AIP [1]

History

1960s

By the late 1960s, Abu Dhabi Airfield had grown too small for the city. The idea for a massive new airport was conceived. In 1969, the new Abu Dhabi International Airport was inaugurated. It was later renamed Al Bateen Executive Airport.

In the 1980s a new airport was built on the mainland to accommodate the increasing air traffic. That airport is now the main airport serving the city.

Historical airlines and destinations

Passenger
Airlines Destinations
Air France Paris–Charles de Gaulle
Air India Bombay
B.O.A.C. London–Heathrow
British Airways London–Heathrow
EgyptAir Cairo
Ethiopian Airlines Sana'a
Gulf Air Bahrain
Gulf Aviation Bahrain
Iran Air Shiraz
Kuwait Airways Kuwait
Lufthansa Frankfurt
Middle East Airlines Beirut
Pakistan International Airlines Gwadar, Karachi, Lahore,
Royal Jordanian Amman-Civil
Somali Airlines Mogadishu
Syrian Air Damascus
Tunisair Damascus
Yemenia Sana'a
Sudan Airways Khartoum

[2]

Cargo
Airline Destinations
German Cargo Frankfurt
PIA Cargo Damascus, Istanbul–Atatürk

Government use

Al Bateen's tenants include a UAE Naval Aviation helicopter squadron and the Abu Dhabi Police Department air wing.

Passenger airlines and destinations

Rotana Jet operates private jet services from the airport, having moved all scheduled commercial operations to Abu Dhabi International Airport Terminal 2 in October 2014.[3]

Solar Impulse 2, a Swiss experimental solar powered aircraft, was given its final touches here in 2015. It used the airport as the starting point for its Around the World circumnavigation attempt. The aircraft took off on 9 March 2015 and flew to nearby Oman and then onwards to India. It was also used as the landing site for the final leg from Cairo to Abu Dhabi, landing July 25, 2016.

References
  1. "Al Bateen Airport Statistics". Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. (login required)
  2. "Airlines Serving Abu Dhabi". Departedflights.com.
  3. "Rotana Jet moves base to Abu Dhabi International". The National. 27 October 2014.
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